Dimensional Ruler's Etude Vol 0: First Movement
by Hayaki
Summary: A prequel to DRE Vol. 1. Saya, newly christened as the Dimensional Ruler, begins her journey fighting Shadows along with teenagers with the ability to summon otherworldly beings.
1. Chapter 1

**AN:** And here's the super special DRE release that I alluded to in the previous release of the main storyline! Here you'll get to see the events that lead Saya to being jaded when she first entered the DxD universe. Nearly a month of powering through P3P lead to this which is why I was so delayed in the main series. Also, I'll probably be releasing the first chapter of Vol. 2 soon since it'd take years before DxD actually comes to an end. Don't worry about Vol. 2 spoiling Vol. 1 since it'll basically be a completely different story line. In any case, if you haven't read Vol. 1 yet, I suggest anyone that stumbles across this to go read it first.

* * *

A particular sharp bump jolted me awake from my sleep with a gasp. I blearily glanced around my surroundings to see that I was still in the train. My headphones were blasting electronic music, but despite that, I still managed to fall asleep on the long trip here. Taking a look to my side, I stared at my reflection in the window.

Shoulder-length blue hair done in a ponytail with bangs hanging just above my blue eyes. Good. It doesn't look like I messed my makeup up when I fell asleep.

Right, well, I suppose it's always best to start off with a self-introduction. My name is Arisato Saya. Although I may appear as a normal, nubile teenager, I'm actually extremely old. Not in the sense where I'm immortal or anything, but in the sense where I've already lived multiple different lives. I've kinda lost track of how old I am because of a whole repeated life situation in my previous life so I've decided to start counting ever since I began my adventuring as the Dimensional Ruler.

What is the Dimensional Ruler? Well… I would relate the role to a god of sorts, except, I don't really have any worshipers and for all I know, I'm the only person that knows of my role in the universe. Also, the reason I keep calling it a role is because it's a title that can be passed down. For example, I managed to take the title by killing some old man who turned into a giant space person and then into some kind of giant snake in my previous life.

I… would go into details of what happened in my previous life, but that warrants an entire seasons' running of an anime to explain.

Long story short, I relived the same situation of adventuring to kill a dragon to save the world more than a million times and in the end of everything, I found out that the previous Dimensional Ruler was responsible for it so I killed him. After that, I decided to use my powers to explore other dimensions and worlds and so, here I am.

To be honest, my mind was kind of blown when I first came to this world. Apparently the world I lived in is considered a sort of fantasy world in this one. Although to me, this world is far more of a fantasy. I mean, if I had these planes, cars and trains in my world, adventuring would be so much easier! Instead, I had to walk, run, clim, swim, trudge, and crawl my way through hordes of monsters and wild animals with no rest to reach my goal.

The static sound of the PA system in the train coming to life drew my attention and I took my headphones off to hear what the announcement would be.

" _Attention all passengers, we are arriving shortly at Iwatodai Station. I repeat, we are arriving shortly at Iwatodai Station. Please take care as you disembark the train."_

Yep. That's our stop.

I gently shook my twin brother who was still snoring gently on my shoulder to try to wake him up.

"Hey, Minato, we're almost there. Wake up."

As I was trying to get the lazy lug to get up, a flash of blue from outside the window diverted my attention.

Did a butterfly just fly past the window..?

No way. We're on a train inside of a tunnel. There's no way a butterfly could be here. I must still be a little sleepy.

Dismissing what I saw, I continued to shake Minato until he gave a quiet, final snort before opening his eyes.

"Saya..?" He mumbled as he rubbed his eyes.

"Yeah. It's me, sleepyhead. Hurry up and get ready! We're almost there!"

Instead of listening to me properly, my twin just stretched lazily and gave a huge, open-mouthed yawn.

Jeez. I can't believe how slow he is when he wakes up.

Deciding to take matters into my own hands, I stood up and grabbed our suitcases before slowly and unsteadily walking towards the doors. Moments later, Minato joined me, still yawning and rubbing at his eyes.

"For being my twin sister, I can't believe how different you are…" He muttered.

"Well hey, at least we have the same hair color, right? It's a good thing I'm not a brunette or anything. That would've brought up some problems."

"No kidding."

" _Iwatodai Station. This is Iwatodai Station."_

Finally, after the announcement, the train rolled to a stop and the doors slid open. Dragging our suitcases behind us, we stepped out into the cool night air. The moon was hanging high in the sky, providing a little bit of additional illumination to the station's lights.

Minato raised the MP3 player hanging around his neck to his face and stared at the screen.

"11:59," he said. "We're running really late."

I nodded. "That late? We were supposed to get here hours ago!"

"Yeah, well, a certain airhead misplaced her ticket and we had to buy another one. Not to mention we were also running late because you pigged out at that ramen shop before we left."

I flinched at Minato's harsh words. I don't really want to admit it, but he's right.

"I-I was starving, though. We skipped lunch because of the whole ticket fiasco!" I said, trying to save the last dregs of my dignity.

As Minato opened his mouth again to retort, all the lights around us started blinking off one by one, and the music that was still playing through Minato's headphones stopped abruptly as well.

The two of us immediately stopped our bickering as we warily glanced around. The world had taken a strange, green tint to everything and mysterious pools of blood seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

A chill ran down my back as the phenomenon started again. Despite having travelled through a desolate wasteland in my previous life, this is completely disturbing in its own right.

"Come on, let's hurry."

Minato, in contrast to me, appeared as cool as a bottle of wine sitting at the bottom of a frozen lake. That is to say, very composed.

Taking the lead with a map to our new residence in hand, he constantly kept his eyes out for any of the monsters that roamed this special time. This non-existent hour in between time where only us and the monsters can traverse in.

The strange thing is, this phenomenon only happened after the accident that killed our parents. I say it's an accident, but… I have a pretty clear memory of what happened that night whereas Minato doesn't. Of course, I can't really tell him the truth that robots were fighting a terrifying monster that exuded an aura of death and that monster was sealed inside of him. He'd think I was crazy if I told him that.

Not before long, we heard the tell-tale squelching sound of one of the monsters. Ahead of us was a black mass of goo with hands protruding from its front crawling around. The only thing about it that wasn't gooey was its blue mask that appeared to be sewn into the goo.

"This way."

Taking a detour, Minato ducked into a nearby alley as I followed close behind him. Honestly, we tried fighting those things before, but we barely managed to scratch them so the only thing we can really do is run and hide. It's frustrating for someone like me who could cut through swathes of hell spawn with a single stroke of her swords.

The game of cats and mice continued for a good while before we finally arrived at the place we were going to be staying at, Iwatodai Dorm.

"Hey, maybe we should wait out here until the hour passes," I suggested. "We wouldn't really want to pop in out of nowhere…"

Another thing about this hour is that everyone else besides us are turned into coffins where they stand and when it ends, they just go about their lives as if nothing ever happened.

As if he didn't even hear me, Minato picked up his suitcase and started making his way up the stairs.

"H-Hey, wait!" I called out after him.

Continuing to ignore me, he opened the door to the dormitory and stepped in.

Jeez! What is he thinking?

With no other choice, I huffed and lugged my own suitcase up the stairs and followed him inside.

"Seriously! What if people are here and we just- Oof!"

I rubbed my nose after bumping into Minato's back.

"What the heck? Why are you just standing there?"

Poking him in the back, I tried to nudge him forward, but he didn't budge.

"Um… Minato?"

Okay. This is weird. It's like he's in some kind of trance. Almost like… he's staring at something. I peeked around his shoulder to try to see what he was looking at, but I couldn't see anything. It was just the receptionist's desk. Even though all the lights were off, it was like this world gave off its own perpetual light so it wasn't hard to see stuff at all.

"Minato! Hey! Earth to Minato! Sleepyhead! Emoboy! Hey, listen! Hey! Hey, listen!"

Hm… I thought for sure that last one would've worked on him. That annoys just about anybody I try that out on.

"Who's there?!"

Suddenly, Minato's body jerked at the sound of the new voice and he looked in the direction of the stairs. Following his gaze, I saw a stylish girl in pink pointing a strange-looking handgun at us.

When he saw what the girl was holding, my twin brother immediately stepped forward and placed himself protectively in front of my body.

How is this girl moving around right now? We're still in the other time, aren't we? Or, maybe… she's like us? Was she also involved in that accident back then?

All of a sudden, all the lights in the building came on, startling the girl and almost making her drop the gun.

"Takeba, is something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh, well, it's just-"

Another new arrival joined the pink girl. She had long, flowing red hair with bangs covering left eye. She was dressed in a white, button-up blouse with a red ribbon adorning her collar. Her legs were halfway covered by a high quality black skirt and she had on designer black knee-high high-heel boots. All in all, I was completely captivated by her looks.

Oh crap! I think she saw me staring at her! I need to play this off, quick!

I quickly averted my eyes and stepped forward while cheerfully waving a hand.

"Hey, is this Iwatodai Dorm? We're supposed to be living there as we go to school from now on so…"

The red-head smiled warmly and walked down the rest of the stairs.

"Indeed. This is the Iwatodai Dorms. You two must be the Arisato twins, correct?"

I nodded. "Yep! That's right. I'm Arisato Saya," I introduced myself before pointing to Minato who gave a lazy wave. "And this is my twin brother, older by only a few minutes, Arisato Minato. It's nice to meet you, um…"

"Kirijo. Kirijo Mitsuru," the red-haired beauty introduced herself. "I am a tenant of this dorm as well as a third year attending Gekkoukan High School. It is a pleasure to meet the both of you."

Wow… Her presence kind of reminds me of royalty. Also, her being a third year means she's our senpai.

Next, the pink girl finally lowered her gun and tried to smile naturally as she introduced herself.

"Hey, I'm Takeba Yukari. I live in this dorm too, and I'm a second year at Gekkoukan High. You two can just call me Yukari. It's nice to meet you two."

"So, um… Is it customary to just carry guns here? Or is that just a hobby?" I asked Yukari-san, eyeing the holstered silver gun.

"Huh?" Visibly shocked at my question, she sheepishly scratched at her cheek. "Well… Yeah, it is kind of a hobby, I guess."

Way to sound confident there, girl.

"Don't worry, they aren't real. We simply carry these to use for protection against the unsavory sorts," Mitsuru-senpai said, coming to Yukari-san's rescue.

Well… Whatever their reasons are, I'm sure it'll be fine.

"In any case, it is late, and I am sure you two are tired. Takeba-san, would you mind leading Minato-san to his room?"

Yukari-san nodded while my brother grunted and yawned, his form returning to his natural slouch.

"Saya-san, I'll show you to your room."

"Right!"

As Mitsuru-senpai began climbing up the stairs, I followed closely behind her while the other two trailed behind us.

"The second floor here is for use by male students. Currently there is only one other tenant here. He's preoccupied at the moment so you will meet him later. This is where you'll be living, Minato-san," Mitsuru-senpai explained as we reached the second level. "Takeba-san, I'll leave you to explain the rest to Minato-san."

"Sure. Good night, you two."

After bidding my brother and Yukari-san a quick goodnight, Mitsuru-senpai and I continued onto the third floor.

"Here is where the female tenants stay," Mitsuru-senpai said as we walked down the hall before stopping in front of a wooden door near the end of the hall. "This will be your room for the rest of your time here. It has all the bare bones of furnishing you would need but feel free to redecorate the room to your leisure. As long as you don't cause any damage, almost anything is allowed."

She pauses for a moment to catch her breath before continuing the explanation.

"The wooden double doors at the end lead into the dorm manager's office. To the left of it are the stairs leading to the rooftop. Lastly, my room is directly across of yours while Takeba-san's is next to yours. Do you have any questions?"

Putting a hand to my chin, I thought about it for a moment. "Hm… Yeah, just one. Why is this a co-ed dorm? This is pretty much the only co-ed dorm I've heard of."

Mitsuru-senpai smiled and nodded at my question, as if she was expecting me to ask that.

"Indeed, well the main reason would be that this dorm is fairly new. It was only constructed two years ago."

Two years should still be more than enough time to fill this place up, and from the looks of things there really didn't seem to be that many rooms. Oh well, I'll just let it slide for now.

"Thanks for the tour, Mitsuru-senpai. If I have any more questions I'll be sure to voice them."

"There is no need for thanks. Well then, I shall be retiring for the night."

Inclining her head, the crimson beauty turned around and entered her room.

Well… This is where a new chapter in my life begins.

Yawning, I stepped into my new room, looking forward to what tomorrow might bring.

* * *

 _*pii, pii, pii, pii, pii p-*_

My hand retracted from the plain, digital alarm clock resting on the end table next to my bed before I sat up and sleepily rubbed my eyes.

Still more than an hour before school starts. Plenty of time for me to get ready and to get there.

As I was getting dressed, a knock on my door drew my attention away from my preparations.

"Door's unlocked, come in!" I said, my voice was slightly muffled from holding my hair ribbon in my mouth.

The door opened and I saw Yukari-san step into the room, fully dressed.

"Wow. I didn't expect you to be up this early," she commented.

"Well, years of having to wake your lazy brother up every day can do that to you. Did you come here to wake me up?"

"Yeah," Yukari-san nodded. "I just thought that since today is you guys' first day, we should get to school a little early. Mitsuru-san's gone ahead of us for student council duties so I'm left here to take care of the two of you."

Finally getting my ponytail done, I gave it a little flick and nodded when it didn't pull apart.

Good! All set to go!

Standing up from my chair, I fixed my uniform in the full-length mirror before turning to face Yukari-san.

"Alright, you ready to go to war?"

Yukari-san blinked a couple of times at my question.

"Huh?" Was her only response.

I grinned at her reaction. Oh this is going to be fun.

After following Yukari-san to my brother's room, which was coincidentally right below mine, I began to stretch as if I was preparing for a triathlon.

"Um… Saya-chan, what are you doing?"

Instead of answering her question, I just flashed a quick smile before I inserted the spare key to Minato's room I got last night from Mitsuru-senpai into the keyhole and turning it.

Taking a deep breath, I threw open the door, careful not to bust it off its hinges and strode into the room to the side of my brother's bed.

"Hey, Minato!" I shouted as I leapt on top of the lump under the sheets. "Wake up! It's morning so it's time to wake up!"

No response. As usual, I'll have to move on to phase two.

"If you don't get up right now, I'll tickle you until you wet the bed!"

Although I phrased that as a warning, I didn't wait a single beat before throwing off the blanket and beginning my assault.

"Urgh…"

Good, it seems to be working. After years of experience I've learned just where he's weak at.

"Take this, and this, and some of that!"

Underneath me my brother squirmed and groaned uncomfortably before he finally opened his eyes and gave me an irritated look.

"Good. You're finally up. Now get ready and hurry downstairs. Yukari-san here is taking the time to show us the way to school."

With my job done, I nimbly hopped off of Minato's chest and joined Yukari-san by the doorway.

"Do you have to do this every morning?" She asked me with a quirked eyebrow as we walked out of the room to give my brother some peace.

"Well… I used to just punch him in the gut to wake him up but…" I leaned in close to Yukari-san's ear before whispering, "After a little… accident, I stopped doing that."

"Accident?"

A moment later, realization dawned on Yukari-san's face and she wrinkled her face in a mixture of amusement and disgust.

"I see. I think I can guess what happened," she said.

"Yep."

We continued chatting about general things as we made our way downstairs and had a quick breakfast consisting of cereal. Halfway through our meal Minato made his way down and joined us. Once we were all finished, we departed from the dorm and headed to the nearby train station with Yukari-san leading the way.

The train was packed with students all wearing the Gekkoukan High uniform, although some of them had modified theirs like Yukari-san's. I had the impression that Gekkoukan was a prestigious and stuck-up place but their dress code was actually pretty lax. Turns out you can wear almost anything at all as long as you don't show too much skin and the clothing isn't offensive in any way.

"Ah! I always like this part of the commute where we're passing over the ocean. It almost feels like we're gliding over the water," Yukari-san suddenly points out.

When I glance out the window of the train, I see that we are indeed going over the ocean. The morning sun was hitting the surface of the water and was making it shimmer with an almost other-worldly beauty. This island really is an amazing place.

Nothing much else happened for the rest of the ride. Yukari-san and I were making small talk on our favorite shows, or our favorite books until we reached our stop. Once the doors opened, Yukari-san leads us through the wave of students exiting the train along with us and we begin going towards the school gates.

"Hey," Our pink guide says suddenly once we reach the entrance. "Don't mention what you saw yesterday night to anybody, okay you two?"

I shared a glance with Minato before nodding simultaneously with him.

"Good. Well I'm going to head to class first. You two should probably check in at the faculty office first. It's just down the hall to the left of the entrance. I'll catch you two later."

Waving, Yukari-san went inside without us.

"Well, this is it. Another new school…" I murmured.

"Yeah," my brother nodded in agreement. "Back here of all places."

"You think something's going to happen?"

"Most likely."

I sighed. Yeah. Something's definitely going to happen. I guess I've enjoyed my life of peace for long enough.

Not wanting to waste any more time, the two of us stepped forward into our new school.

* * *

The first week of school passed by in a blur. Minato and mine's routines mainly consisted of going to school, attending class, talking with Junpei and Yukari, and then heading home to go to sleep. To be honest, I started suspecting something was up the second day we were told to go rest early. My suspicions were only solidified when Minato told me he found a camera hidden in a corner in his room. Sure enough, there was also another camera hidden in mine in the same area.

Seriously. What is up with this dorm? Is it filled with voyeuristic perverts? That Ikutsuki guy definitely gave me the creeps, and we still haven't seen the other third year that lives here.

Sighing, I turned onto my side and tried to bury myself deeper into my blanket. Now that I know I'm being watched, it's kind of hard going to sleep…

Then, just as I began drifting off into a peaceful slumber, a huge crash that rocked the entire building jolted me awake.

What the hell?!

I jumped out of bed and quickly threw on my uniform before heading out to see what happened. It looks like it turned to midnight in the time I spent trying to fall asleep.

"Saya!"

Turning at the sound of Yukari-san's voice, I saw her running towards me carrying a naginata with my brother in tow.

"Hurry, take this!" She said as she handed me the polearm. "Sorry, but there's no time to explain! We've got to get up to the roof!"

"Huh? Um, r-right!"

Shooting a questioning look at my brother, who just shrugged in response, before following the two up the staircase at the end of the hall. Once we made it outside onto the roof, Yukari-san slammed the door shut behind us.

"Hey, Yukari-san, you mind explaining what's happening?"

Sighing, the brunette turned towards us while nervously rubbing her arm.

"Well… How should I put this…"

Before Yukari-san could continue, a strange squelching sound that came from behind us drew our attention. I turned just in time to see a hand, made of some kind of black goop, grab the ledge of the roof as the rest of the body quickly followed.

It was… what the hell is that? It's just… slime. Black slime with multiple arms carrying swords in each hand except for one that was just holding a blue mask with the Roman numeral for one inscribed on the forehead. It wasn't like any of the monsters we had seen before.

"I-It's here!" Yukari-san screamed as she fumbled with her holster. "I… I have to fight!"

Once the gun was gripped securely in her trembling hands, she slowly raised it to her forehead with her finger on the trigger.

Huh? Why is she suddenly trying to kill herself?!

"W-wait, Yukari! That's not how y-!"

I began running towards her to try to tackle her before she could fire, but an explosion of fire that appeared between us sent us flying in opposite directions. I flew back towards the monster and the edge while Yukari-san slammed into the door to the rooftop, dropping her gun in the process.

"Ugh…"

Shaking off the stars in my eyes, I slowly climbed back onto my feet and turned to face the monstrosity, weapon at the ready.

Dammit! Like hell am I going to let this thing kill us here!

"Haaaaah!"

Dashing forward, I slashed at one of the arms, hoping to decrease the enemy's combat ability.

"Wh-What?!"

Halfway into the cut my naginata had gotten caught inside the goo. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't pull it free.

Tch. No use, huh?

In retaliation, the monster tried slashing at me with one of its multiple swords, forcing me to let go of my weapon and backpedal.

What to do… I've sealed all of my abilities so I'm just a normal human right now…

Wait, the gun!

Turning around, I scanned the ground for any signs of the silver object when I saw Minato bringing it up to his head with a glazed look in his eyes.

The world seemed to freeze as he uttered his next word.

"Per-"

"So-"

"Na!"

The sound of glass shattering filled the air as he pulled the trigger. A blue aura began emanating from his body as some kind of mechanical being appeared behind him.

I see… So that's what the gun is supposed to do.

In the next second, though, things started to go wrong. Minato cried out in pain and clutched at his head as the thing he summoned mirrored his movements. Then, the robot split in half as a pair of black hands reached out from inside it and began trying to tear itself out of it.

A chill ran down my spine. This feeling of dread and despair… It was the same feeling I had on that bridge all those years ago. It was the unmistakable feeling of death.

In mere seconds, the physical personification of death had ripped apart the mechanical person and now stood in its place.

My body refused to move as it gave a primal roar and charged past me towards the monster. Even if I couldn't see it, I could tell that the monster was getting completely destroyed. There were no pained cries, but the constant sound of ripping and squelching made it clear that the monster stood no chance.

Finally, the beat down stopped and the personification of death roared once more.

Then, the night fell into silence.

It was only until Minato swayed on his feet and collapsed that I noticed that I was able to move again.

"Minato!"

As I began running towards my fallen brother, I noticed a wet squelch come from behind me. When I looked, I saw that all that was left of the monster was small blob with a blue mask on top of it and arms coming out of its sides.

Tch, it's still alive? Well at least I know how to fight it now.

Running to Minato's side, I grabbed the silver gun that he had dropped and placed the barrel to my temple.

"Persona!"

A searing pain invaded my head as the sound of shattering glass broke the silence. In front of me appeared a similar being that Minato summoned, except this one had twintails and carried a bow instead of the harp that Minato's carried.

"I am thou… Thou art I… From the sea of thy soul, I come… I, Euryale, shall show you true beauty."

Euryale… One of the three gorgon sisters. I just summoned a mythical being?

Never mind that. I have more pressing matters to attend to.

Yeah, I can feel it. My heart and mind feel clearer than they ever have before. I'm sure I can win with this!

Right, so… How do I use this thing? Should I just give it a command or something?

"Um… Attack!"

No? Nothing? Nope. It's just floating there.

All of a sudden, a pair of words appeared in my head as if from out of nowhere.

"Holy Arrow!"

At my command, Euryale notched her bow with an arrow with a heart-shaped tip before firing it the blob that was slowly crawling towards me. The thing dissolved instantly as soon as the arrow hit it.

Well, that was… anticlimactic.

So, a Persona, huh? That's what these things are called?

As the apparition beside me disappeared into the night air, the door to the rooftop crashed open and Mitsuru-senpai followed by another guy wearing a red vest rushed out.

"Well, you guys are kind of late," I said jokingly. "You missed all the fun."

I stretched and sighed as the oppressive atmosphere of this phenomenon disappeared and the world returned to normal.

This is one hell of a way to start off a new school year.

* * *

As the year progressed Minato and I became full-fledged members of S.E.E.S and began undertaking our new responsibilities to cleanse this world of Shadows and investigate Tartarus. Minato was appointed as squad leader to his uncanny ability to lead and to switch Persona while I was appointed vice-leader in case we needed to split into two groups or if he was out of commission.

Not long after our first incident that awakened our Personae, Junpei Iori, a classmate of ours joined S.E.E.S unexpectedly when Akihiko-senpai found him awake during the Dark Hour. Next, a first year named Fuuka Yamagishi joined when she was spirited away to Tartarus one day when she was locked inside the school as a result of bullying. With her as our Navigator, Mitsuru-senpai no longer had to support us from the entrance and began to join us in our exploration and full moon operations. After that while on vacation to an island Mitsuru-senpai's family owned, we met Aigis, a robot designed to destroy Shadows, who instantly fell in love with Minato. Well, that's what it looks like on the outside, but I'm sure she feels responsible for sealing that personification of death inside of my brother. The next to join was Ken Amada, an orphan that Ikutsuki took in after seeing that he had the potential as well. As a result, Shinjiro-senpai rejoined S.E.E.S to try to atone for his past sins. Finally and unexpectedly, Koromaru, an albino Shiba Inu joined our team.

And then… October 4th came. It was supposed to be just another full moon operation, but… Shinjiro-senpai and Ken didn't show up.

* * *

"They're still not here? The Dark Hour's gonna end soon if they don't hurry it up," Junpei said as he leaned against his katana.

"Yamagishi, can you locate them?" Mitsuru-senpai asked.

"Um, yes, please give me a moment," the teal-haired first year answered. "I've found them! They're together in an alleyway a few blocks down the street. That's strange… they're not moving."

Something's not right. Akihiko-senpai told me all about the incident that caused Shinjiro-senpai to quit S.E.E.S. If both of them aren't here, then that can only mean that Ken is…

"Dammit! Everyone, take care of the Shadow! I'm going to go find those two!"

Without waiting for anyone to answer me, I took off in the direction that Fuuka pointed towards.

"Saya! Wait!"

Ignoring Mitsuru-senpai's call, I continued to sprint as fast as I could.

Please make it in time! Please make it in time!

It took me a good five minutes to finally find them.

"Ken! No!"

Yelling, I ran up to the trembling boy who was pointing a real gun at Shinjiro-senpai before grabbing his arm and wrenching it up to the sky.

"S-Saya-san?!"

The boy struggled to get out of my grip, but I held on tight.

"You idiot!"

Ken flinched at the severity of my voice and stared up at me, shaking. Come to think of it, I think this is the first time I've ever been really angry in front of one of my friends.

"What the hell were you thinking?! How could you even think of killing another person? Especially when you're just a kid!"

Finally finding some shred of courage, Ken stared up at me defiantly.

"What would you know?! I saw it! I saw him kill my mom! If I do this, then I can finally have my revenge!"

This kid..!

Before I even realized it, I had cracked him across the face with a harsh slap.

The sound seemed to echo and reverberate through the alleyway. Ken's head turned sharply to the side from the force of the hit and he was now biting back tears.

"Yeah," I began saying as I dropped to my knees and hugged the boy. "I don't understand what it's like to hate someone for so long, but you also don't understand how Shinjiro-senpai feels either. How do you know that he hasn't been mentally beating himself up ever since that incident? How do you know that he had evil intentions?"

"Th-that… that's…"

"Listen to me, Ken. No matter what, killing another person is wrong. I'm not saying you should forgive Shinjiro-senpai so easily for killing your mother, but I'm also not saying you should condemn him to death. Violence can only bring more violence. Just think. If you had killed Shinjiro-senpai here, what would Akihiko-senpai and Mitsuru-senpai do? They would condemn you, just like you did Shinjiro-senpai."

Ken fell silent at my words, and then suddenly I felt a wetness begin to spread across my chest. Smiling, I gently stroked the boy's head as he silently cried into my bosom. He's been deprived of a mother all these years, so the least I could do was act like one for him even if it's just for this one moment. Once he had calmed down enough, I stood up and whirled to face Shinjiro-senpai with as stern an expression as I could manage.

"And you! What the hell were you thinking just standing there?! Were you just going to accept your death? Do you really think that being killed by Ken was a way to atone?"

"Huh?" Shinjiro-senpai visibly started at my words.

Not giving him any room to retort, I continued, "You should've begun atoning ever since Ken joined S.E.E.S, except instead you were too much of a coward to talk to him! Also, if you thought that it was too hard to bring up, you should've asked for help! Akihiko-senpai and Mitsuru-senpai would've helped you no questions asked except you had to be all emo and try to take everything on your shoulders. We're all comrades now, so we should be able to trust each other with our problems!"

"Ugh… A-Alright, I get it. I'm sorry, jeez," Shinjiro-senpai said as he scratched at his beanie.

"Good! Now, you two, make up!"

At my order, both Ken and Shinjiro-senpai nodded and began awkwardly apologizing to each other.

That's a job well done. Smiling, I placed my hands on my hips and watched as the two talked through their feelings and differences. Thank goodness I made it here in time to stop Ken from doing anything he would regret.

"How dull. I was hoping the boy would help with the job, but it seems like I will have to finish all three of you by myself."

A voice?

I turned towards the source of the voice to see the glint of a gun barrel peering out of the shadows aimed towards Ken.

I only had a second to react when the man pulled the trigger.

"Move!"

Time seemed to slow as I began running towards Ken to tackle him out of the way. From the corner of my eye I saw the flash and heard the explosion of the bullet leaving the gun.

I won't make it in time!

A flash of red entered my vision just as I reached Ken and tackled him to the ground, holding him close to my body. When I looked up, I saw Shinjiro-senpai standing over us with his arms spread open.

"Ugh..!"

Staggering, he fell to his knees while clutching at his chest.

"Senpai!"

Getting up, Ken and I rushed to his side to see if he was okay.

My heart dropped when I saw the hole and slowly spreading crimson in the left side of his chest, just under his heart. With a wound like that, he'll bleed out in no time, but… the Dark Hour is still active so we can't even take him to a hospital.

"Shinjrio-san! Hang in there!"

As Ken stayed by Shinjiro-senpai's side, I stood up and confronted the man coming out of the shadows with a revolver leveled at us.

"Takaya…" I growled.

This guy…

"Hm. I certainly didn't expect for him to jump in front of the boy," the man said with an unsettling smile. "Well, no matter. This place shall become a grave for all three of you."

Dammit! This isn't good. If only I decided to unlock my powers, I could easily take him out right here.

"Shinji!"

Akihiko-senpai?

I turned to see Akihiko-senpai running towards us along with the rest of S.E.E.S trailing behind him.

They're here!

Breathing a sigh of relief, I returned my attention to Takaya who was now frowning.

"It seems, unfortunately, this is all I can do tonight. Well then, farewell for now."

The man lowered his gun and slowly backed into the shadows, leaving us.

"Shinji! Hey, come on!"

"Aragaki-senpai!"

"Shinjiro!"

"Senpai!"

The majority of S.E.E.S had crowded around Shinjiro-senpai except for my brother who had instead come up to me.

"Saya, are you hurt?" He asked.

Shaking my head, I looked towards Shinjiro-senpai.

"I'm fine, but…"

"It's too late."

"Huh?"

Minato's words sent a chill down my spine and I stared at him with a mixture of fear and confusion.

"What do you mean it's too late? Yukari can heal him, can't she?"

Instead of answering, Minato just shook his head.

I see… I guess, with Death itself living inside of him he's able to sense these things.

Looking at our comrades fussing of Shinjiro-senpai, I unconsciously clenched my fists and grit my teeth in frustration.

If only. If only I wasn't such a coward in revealing my true self… Then Shinjiro-senpai wouldn't be dying. We wouldn't have to go through this.

This is my fault. I could've prevented this easily, and yet…

It was on that night, when S.E.E.S lost a precious member of the team that I was reminded…

What we were doing on a daily basis: going into Tartarus, hunting Shadows, protecting the city.

It wasn't a game. There was no room for hesitation and doubt.

No.

It was a matter of life and death.

One mistake may cost us one of our lives.

On that fateful day, I was reminded of that fact.

The undeniable truth that is Death.

* * *

Shinjiro-senpai's death brought about a variety of reactions from S.E.E.S. Mitsuru-senpai and Akihiko-senpai both were mortified and depressed at first, but then resolved to put an end to Shadows and the Dark Hour once and for all. Junpei and Yukari mourned alongside everyone and did their best to support those of us that took his death the hardest. Ken and Koromaru were probably the hardest to cheer up. Ken felt he was especially responsible for Shinjiro-senpai's death because he was the one that created the situation while Koromaru lost a man equal to his previous master. In the end, the two of them found solace in each other and bonded together. Aigis and Minato were the least effected. Aigis, with her progress in expressing human emotions, showed sadness but was the first to move on. Minato… well… he took it all in stride. I'm kind of envious of how everything affects him so little. Maybe it's the guilt. The guilt I felt when Shinjiro-senpai died for not being able to protect him properly. The guilt I felt for not taking the situation seriously. Negative thoughts pervaded my mind for a long time after that. If only I hadn't completely sealed my powers. If only I had moved a bit faster. If only, if only, if only.

Now that I think about it. That may have been the point where my mind started to break. The death of one of my precious comrades; one that I could have prevented so easily.

Yes. Without a doubt. That was when I first began distancing myself from those around me.

* * *

"IKUTSUKIIIIIII!"

Screaming at the top of my lungs, I hurled myself at the glasses wearing bastard; not caring about the gun he was carrying or of the panicked cries that were coming from behind me.

All I wanted right now was to see this man as a bloody pulp underneath me.

I began repeatedly pounding the bastard in his smug face, each hit fueled by my unbridled rage at his deception.

Because of him, we had to suffer through all of this! Because of him, Shinjiro-senpai died! Because of him, Mitsuru-senpai's father was killed! This bastard was responsible for everything bad that's happened to us!

These kids were forced to fight because of his delusions of grandeur. They suffered unimaginable losses when all they wanted and deserved were regular school lives.

Panting, I ceased my attacking and proceeded to pick him up and drag him to the edge of the platform. I grabbed him by the collar of his coat and held him over the chasm that seemingly had no bottom.

"Bastard… Do you even feel any remorse for what you did?"

"Hahahahaha! It doesn't matter anymore now. Nyx will be revived and the entire world shall be erased!"

This…

While still dangling the bastard off the edge, I picked up the gun he dropped and pressed the barrel into his chest before firing a shot off.

I let the bastard go and watched as he fell into the abyss below, a light trail of blood following after him.

The next day, Ikutsuki's death was disguised as an accident. The cover story was that he had slipped and fallen to his death last night while Mitsuru-senpai's father died of a heart attack.

Now that I think about it…

That night might have been the point where I began losing myself. I myself had begun descending into an endless abyss that would be nearly impossible for me to return from.

* * *

After I had killed Ikutsuki, I had begun unconsciously distancing myself from the rest of S.E.E.S. I guess my actions had weighed down on my mind far more than I thought. It was the first time I had ever killed another human being through hatred, and it had left a bad aftertaste.

A few days later, a transfer student by the name Ryoji Mochizuki appeared. Aigis was the only one of us that had any feeling that there was more to him than meets the eye. It was a month later that we learned of his true identity as the Harbringer. He was the one that caused the carnage on the Moonlight Bridge ten years ago where we lost our parents in. He was the entity that was sealed inside Minato by Aigis.

Somehow or another, we managed to bond with Ryoji and as a result, he gave us an ultimatum: Kill him and lose all our memories related to the Shadows and Personas until The Fall came, or spare him and try to oppose The Fall with everything we had. The final decision came down to Minato who chose to not kill Ryoji.

And so, we prepared ourselves for the day of the final battle.

* * *

Minato…

I struggled to stay on my feet as some kind of pressure was forcing me down to my knees. We had managed to defeat Ryoji, but we were too late to stop The Fall. I could feel it. The emptiness that radiated from the thing above us…

The only one not affected by the pressure was Minato who was going to confront the thing alone.

" _Master, it is time. Release your true abilities."_

That voice… Euryale?

The world seemed to freeze around me as a card appeared and floated in front of me.

" _Through the bonds you two have created, and the blood you share, the power of the Universe arcana has awoken within you."_

This is..!

I can feel it… I can feel all of my powers that I sealed returning to me.

" _Go, to the plane that exists between worlds."_

The pressure was no longer pressing down of me.

No.

Maybe it was, but I just can't feel it.

Now I can go after Minato. I feel – no – I know that if I don't go after him here, he's not going to come back.

"Everyone," I said as I stood to my full height. "Don't worry; I'll bring that idiot brother of mine back. All this time, he's been protecting me – protecting us. That's why this time… I'll repay the favor."

"Saya… You…"

I glanced back at Mitsuru who looked like she didn't want me to go.

"I promised I'd live for you, right? I'll come back, with Minato in tow."

My lover lowered her eyes and nodded.

Alright.

"Let's go, Stheno!"

Placing the Evoker to my head, I pulled the trigger and summoned my evolved Persona and flew up towards the void to join Minato.

Once I entered it, the world changed and warped around me. There was a singular orb floating in an endless abyss.

"Minato!" I called out as I flew down to him. He was on his knees and looked like he was on the precipice of death.

"S-Saya..? Why are you..?"

"Idiot. You know full well why I'm here."

Minato chuckled softly as he shakily stood up.

"So the goddess finally decides to perform some divine intervention?"

I froze at his words.

"How..?"

"Let's just say an old man with a long nose told me."

Old man with a long nose?

"Hah! What the hell's up with that?"

"Alright, I'm tagging out. Good luck, sis."

Right… I understand now what Euryale meant by a plane between worlds. Here, I can unleash my full power without the world pushing back. It was a place similar to the Dimensional Rift.

"So, you're Nyx, huh?" I said as I stared up at the floating orb.

Instead of an aura of death, I only felt nothingness from it. It had no will to destroy anything. In fact, I'm sure its existence is completely malleable.

In that case…

I snapped my fingers and the darkness immediately was replaced by a pure white. Behind Nyx, the being that was hiding in the void, stood a shadowy four-legged creature with heads on both ends of it. Its faces had two solid red glowing orbs for eyes and a massive skull with horns peeking out of the black shadow goo.

This was it. This is the behind that hold malicious intent. Nyx is simply a tool, a weapon, to bring about the end of humanity.

Erebus.

That name rang clear in my mind. I had no idea where it came from, but Erebus is the creature's name.

Then… I shall erase it. Once it has been purged, The Fall should stop.

No… It won't be that easy. I can feel it. This creature is a collection of humanity's will. As long as human's continue to exist, it will too.

Raising my hand, I pointed a finger at the beast. Before it even had a chance to retaliate, golden archway appeared behind it and a multitude of chains shot out and speared the Erebus. The twin heads howled as it struggled to free itself as more and more chains came out of the opening and latched onto it. It was only until its entire body was covered heads to toes before it was pulling into the void waiting behind the open doors. After it had disappeared into the space, the massive doors swung shut as more chains appeared and sealed the door shut.

Now then, I suppose that take care of that.

It feels pretty good to flex my powers like this once in a while. Now, the final touch.

Raising my arms, I gripped the very fabrics of reality and began tearing them apart. Nyx was separated into one half as the space holding Erebus separated into the other. Clenching my fist, I threw the fragment of dimension Erebus was sealed in into a separate plane of existence. I also made sure not to severe Erebus' existence in this world.

Now, unless Erebus can somehow break out of its seal, traverse time and space and, reform dimensions it won't ever be able to influence Nyx again.

I turned back to Minato who was patiently waiting for me.

"You ready to go?" I asked.

He nodded.

"You can hear them, can't you? The voices of our friends… S.E.E.S, Kenji, Hide, the old couple at the book store, Rio, Kazu, Chihiro, Saori, Toriumi-sensei, Ryoji, Kei, Yuko, Maiko, Bebe, Tanaka, Mutatsu, Mamoru, Nozomi, and Akinari. They're calling to you, calling to us, to go back to them."

"Yes. Those are the bonds we have forged together."

"And the source of power for our Universe."

"The hope of humanity."

"To combat the wish for death."

"We stood here together."

"In this world between worlds."

"Let's never forget."

"The trials we faced."

""It's a promise.""

* * *

 **-Status-**

 **Name:** Saya Arisato

 **Age:** 17

 **Academics:** Genius

 **Charm:** Charismatic

 **Courage:** Badass

 **Persona:** Euryale/Stheno

 **Arcana:** Universe

 **Strength:** N/A

 **Weak:** N/A

 **Skills:**

Sexy Dance

Recarmda

Makarakarn

Tentarafoo

Spirit Drain

Poison Arrow

Dekaja

Megidolaon


	2. Chapter 2

**AN:** And here's another reason I was taking so long to update Volume 1. It's been a while since I've updated Volume 0 since I wanted to finish Persona 5 so I could include it into Volume 0. As always, thank you all for you continued support and I hope you enjoy.

* * *

After saving the world, life returned to normal. Well, as normal as possible. The only ones of us that remembered what truly happened that night was Minato, Aigis, and me. There was no reason for it. It was like everybody's memories were simply erased.

And so, the rest of the year passed by in relative peace and the third year's graduation ceremony came. As we were making our way out of the gym after the ceremony was finished, I was almost immediately tackled down to the ground by Mitsuru.

It… Caused quite the scene considering the so-called "Ice Queen" was being anything but.

Later, when the entirety of S.E.E.S was back in the dorm, everyone explained that their memories were returned to them somehow. Probably a product of the strong feelings they had for us triggered by the ceremony. It sounds a bit more romantic that way, right?

Well… Nothing much could be said for our final year at high school. After the third years graduated, Mitsuru went on to a prestigious university while taking over the Kirijo Group while Akihiko began travelling the world in order to get stronger. Minato, Aigis, Yukari, Junpei, Fuuka and I continued living out our days at Gekkoukan in peace. Before we knew it, we graduated as well with different futures in mind.

Ken went to middle school while taking care of Koromaru, Junpei went on to coach little league baseball teams, Yukari went to college while working part-time as a model and as a result got scouted to play a main role in Phoenix Ranger Featherman Victory, Fuuka continued into her third year at Gekkoukan, Aigis went to support Mitsuru in forming the Shadow Operatives, Minato went to a university while helping out Mitsuru, and me, well, I decided to strike out on my own.

After travelling around the world to sight see for a couple of months, I received a sudden business call from Mitsuru. Apparently the Shadow Operatives detected multiple sudden spikes in Shadow activity in a rural town called Inaba. Some investigation into the matter revealed a string of strange deaths that begin with the victim seemingly disappearing without a trace and then their corpse reappearing some time later hanging from impossible places along with a thick fog. The victims included Mayumi Yamano, a TV producer that was caught in a scandal with a politician, Saki Konishi, a high school student from Yasogami High, and Kinshiro Morooka, a teacher of the same high school.

Unfortunately since everyone else was busy with their own work already, Mitsuru could only send me to go do some field work so I found myself sitting in a train on the way out to the middle of nowhere back in Japan's countryside.

Now… Where to start from…

I had checked into my room at the Amagi Inn that Mitsuru had paid for in advance and was now sitting cross-legged on a cushion going over the information they had already garnered with the rain softly pattering against the window.

It seems over the months there have been other disappearances, but they hadn't lead to any deaths. There were rumors back when the first murders happened that Yukiko Amagi, the daughter of the owner of the Amagi in, had gone missing but showed up just fine not long after. Of course, this could just be attributed to her running away from home unable to deal with the pressure placed upon her shoulders about inheriting the inn. Later, Rise Kujikawa, a rising idol in the entertainment industry, was reported to have vanished from Inaba when she came here to get some R&R from the limelight. Although, in a small town like this, I wouldn't be surprised if her relatives and manager managed to hide her away.

Normally, I would've passed those two incidents off as coincidence, but the first two murders followed pretty much the exact same process.

The only outlier is the third one. That teacher didn't disappear and according to the autopsy reports he had suffered from a blow to the head from a blunt object before being asphyxiated while the first two just simply died.

Sighing, I ran a hand through my hair and threw the files down onto the table. Nothing much to do now but to wait for midnight. If the Dark Hour occurs then I think it's safe to say that Shadows are responsible for these incidents.

The hands of the clock ticked slowly forward until finally the hour hand struck twelve.

Nothing happened.

No green tint fell over the world, the lights were still working and my bottle of water wasn't filled with blood instead.

Suddenly, the television in the corner of the room clicked to life and started displaying static.

The hell? Don't tell me this inn is haunted. I… honestly wouldn't be too surprised if it is considering it's a historical inn.

As I reached for the remote, the static on the screen began clearing up and revealed an image of a figure standing in the middle of a heavy yellow fog.

" _CoME anD Get me."_

The person's voice was heavily distorted, but it was clearly male. A few seconds later, the image disappeared returning the screen to its original state.

Come and get me… Was that guy the culprit behind the murders? Does he know that I'm here already? Guy sure is full of himself, though.

Heh. Alright. I'll play your little game. First order of business tomorrow is to investigate the two that disappeared. Yukiko should be easy since she helps out around the inn and its summer break, but Rise is another story. No doubt she has some kind of security detail hanging around her that wouldn't take too kindly to nosy people.

-xXx-

"So, I hear you've been asking around town about the recent incidents. Care to tell us why?"

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. I admit. This situation was completely my fault. I should've been more careful in my questioning and I left a pretty obvious paper trail.

"I told you already. I'm a freelance journalist and I wanted to investigate into the murders."

The grizzled-looking detective sitting across from me shook his head and muttered something under his breath. Something about 'vultures'.

"Look kid," he said as he folded his arms and leaned back into his chair all the while glaring at me. "The police are already looking into this matter. We don't need nosy outsiders like you poking around town stirring the locals up."

In situations like these it's best to just give up and agree, right? Going against the police directly couldn't be any more of a stupid idea.

"Alright, I understand," I replied with a practiced smile. "But I've already paid to stay here for about a month. I hope you don't mind if I take advantage of that. This town is quite nice, after all. I promise I'll stop asking around about the mur – ahem – incidents."

The detective stared at me as if I had grown a third eye or something before regaining his composure. Guess he didn't expect me to agree so easily.

"Hmph. I'll hold you to that promise. If I catch you stirring up trouble again…"

"I got it. Won't ask around, and won't cause trouble. I swear."

"Good," the detective grunted before standing up, grabbing his coat and slinging it over his shoulder before opening up the door to the interrogation room. "Come on, I'll show you out."

Hehe. Fool. I only promised you that I'd stop asking about the murders. I didn't promise anything about not stalking the two girls that disappeared for a brief time.

Following the detective out the police station, I finally stepped back out into the warming embrace of the sunlight. I must've spent about half an hour in that dark, dingy room.

"You'd better not go back on your word!" The detective called out towards me before disappearing back inside.

Yeah, don't worry old man. I won't.

Stretching my arms, I began walking towards the local Junes to grab a bite to eat. I didn't exactly bring a lot of money with me, and I didn't want to ask Mitsuru for money either so I'll have to settle for the cheap stuff.

Arriving at the food court, I order some fries and a soda before taking a seat at one of the plastic tables near a group of students chatting amongst themselves.

Heh. To think that I'd be able to find both Yukiko and Rise within minutes of leaving the police station. What kind of crazy luck is that? It does look like they're with a bunch of friends from their school, though.

Let's see… There's a guy with silvery-gray hair in a swept bob that looks like he's the center of the group, a guy with brown hair with orange headphones hanging around his neck that's acting all buddy-buddy with gray, Yukiko Amagi who seems to be friends with some girl with short brown hair wearing a green track jacket, also some rough looking delinquent guy with bleached hair, a strange red and blue bear mascot suit, and finally there's Rise Kujikawa herself that's clinging onto the gray guy.

All in all, I'd say that's a pretty strange group.

Slipping a pair of fake headphones on, I lean back and listen in on the conversation they were having.

"So, we're sure we're ready to take on that weird dungeon now?" Orange Headphone asks.

Dungeon? Are they talking about a video game?

"We secured a route to the boss the last time we were in there, and we did some training as well." Rise says. "What do you think, Yu-senpai?"

Yu-senpai, the gray-haired guy, nods and answers, "I also got everyone some better weapons, and stocked up on recovery items. Although there's still time, the sooner we take care of Mitsuo the better."

Mitsuo? That doesn't really sound like the name of a dungeon boss.

"Then what're we waitin' for? Let's haul ass and go kick that loser's ass!" Biker shouts as he pounds his fists together.

"Alright. Let's move, then." Yu-senpai declares as he stands up from his seat.

The rest of the group follows his lead as they head inside the Junes.

Quickly finishing off the rest of my fries, I dump the rest of my soda down my throat before hurrying to tail them. It's a weekday so the inside of the store is fairly sparse making it easy for me to spot them; especially when they're the only people around heading to the home appliances section. They continue moving to the back of the store to where the TV aisle is and stop in front of one of the big plasmas. I hide in the aisle next to them and pretend to browse the stock while keeping an eye on the big convex mirror hanging on the corner. One by one, the students reach out and touch the screen of the TV they're standing in front of before disappearing into it. The only evidence left of their existence are the ripples across the screen that vanishes as well before long.

Well… That's not the strangest thing I've seen in this world, but it's still pretty damn weird.

Checking to make sure the coast is clear, I make my way until I'm standing in front of the TV they went into. I slowly stretch my hand out towards the black screen. As my fingers tips graze the surface, instead of feeling resistance, they instead sink right through.

This thing's a portal of some kind… Could this be the source of the Shadow activity? If that's the case then that means those kids are fighting the shadows. Just like we did.

My free hand reaches underneath my coat. The reassuring cold steel of my Evoker greets my fingers, giving me a sense of relief. I may not have my naginata with me, but I'm sure I'll be able to handle things.

It's now or never, Saya. Come on.

Taking a deep breath, I force myself to jump into the TV. My vision goes white as a sudden feeling of weightlessness overcomes me. Suddenly, I can eyes clear just in time for my face to crash into the floor.

I thought that portal would've put me a lot higher up.

Groaning, I push myself onto my feet, rubbing my sore nose.

"Ah…"

I stop in my tracks as I realize I'm surrounded by the group of students from before, except now they're all wearing fashionable glasses and brandishing various lethal looking weapons.

Yu-senpai is two-handing a katana held low, parallel to the ground, Orange Headphones is carrying a pair of kunai, Track Girl has a pair of heavy-looking metal greaves on her feet, Yukiko is carrying a bladed fan, Biker is hefting a metal folding chair, the bear mascot has long claws attached to his arms, and Rise… appears to be unarmed.

There is an unspoken tension hanging in the air around us, although that could just be the dense, yellow fog surrounding us.

Orange Headphones is the first to speak.

"Hey! Who are you?"He shouts, pointing one of his kunai at me.

"Don't worry," I answer while slowly raising both my hands above my head. "I'm not an enemy."

Yeah… I don't think they'll buy that. Telling them that I'm a Shadow Operative is out of the question. Mitsuru made it really clear to me that she'd 'execute' me if she found out I leaked information.

"You didn't answer my question. Who are you?" Orange Headphones repeats.

"I'm… an investigator. I came to Inaba to try to get to the bottom of the disappearances and murders."

The group only grows even more wary at my explanation.

Dammit. I should've waited a little bit before following them into the TV. A flash from the side catches my attention and I see some strange, lanky female figure in a white dress with a satellite for a head floating beside Rise.

A Persona.

"Th-this is-! Everyone, this woman is extremely powerful! I don't think we should mess with her!" She calls out.

I see… So she has a support type Persona like Fuuka.

Wait, but how did she summon a Persona? I don't see any Evokers on them. Could it be the glasses?

"Look, I know how suspicious I might be, but I'm not here to fight you guys. Let's just calm down, okay?"

"Orrrrah!"

Sensing danger, I leap to the side just in time to see Biker come crashing down with a stomp.

Holy shit. If I had been standing there I would've been flattened.

"Kanji!? What the hell are you doing, idiot?!" Orange Headphone shouts.

"Ah? This chick is clearly suspicious as hell! In fact, she's probably the one that's responsible for the murders!" Biker, Kanji, yells back. "Take-Mikazuchi!"

A blue tarot card appears in front of Kanji before he crushes it in his fist. Above him appears a gigantic black robot with a skeletal decal. It rears its arm back and stabs downward with a massive lightning bolt that appeared in its hand, sending electricity running along the ground towards me.

A Mazio spell.

Well, at this point I might as well try to knock some sense into him. His friends are looking torn between helping him or leaving him to fight it out, so I should finish this fast.

Leaping backwards, I reach under my coat and draw my Evoker.

"Kanji-kun!"

Ah… That's right. They probably think this is a real gun.

All of a sudden, the others in the group leap into action and surround me.

"Go, Jiraiya!"

At Orange Headphones call, a weird frog ninja hero appears begins spinning, generating a tornado that starts to draw me in.

"Get her! Tomoe!"

A female Persona comes forth below me wearing a yellow tracksuit with a double bladed naginata. She spins her weapon and begins rising towards me.

"Come! Konohana-Sakuya!"

Next, Yukiko summons her Persona, a pink and red cheerleader with large feathers on her arms forming a kind of cape around it, which fires a fireball into the tornado creating a flaming twister.

"Come out! Kintoki-Douji!"

The bear mascot, to my surprise, also summons a Persona: A rotund red robot carrying a tomahawk missile which it sends flying my way.

"Izanagi!"

Finally, Yu-senpai joins in. A robotic figure wearing a gakuran carrying long sword appears above me and comes crashing down with electricity enveloping its blade.

The level of teamwork these kids have is amazing. To think they managed to easily surround me and perform such a coordinated attack that I can't dodge in only a few seconds is beyond impressive.

It's impressive, but it's not good enough.

I place the barrel of the gun against my forehead. The feeling of cold steel accompanied by a rush of adrenaline is intoxicating and I can't help but feel a maniacal grin creep up on my lips.

" **Stheno!** "

Shattering glass.

Time seems to slow down.

The familiar form of my trusted partner appears in front of me.

She looks back at me, a wordless smile etched onto her mask.

I return it, and the world explodes in a flash of white.

-xXx-

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow! Wh- Hey! Cut it out! That hurts!"

Sighing, I finish applying the healing ointment to Hanamura's, the guy with the orange headphones, forehead before giving him a light slap. "Stop complaining. How do you expect to fight Shadows if you're whining about something like this?"

"Haha! She's right, Yosuke! Stop being such a baby!" Satonaka, the short-haired girl wearing the tracksuit, comments while snickering.

In any case," I say, turning to the leader of the group, Narukami Yu. "Care to explain what's going on in this town, now?"

The grey-haired boy nods. "Of course. A deal's a deal, but I also want to hear a little bit more about you."

Heh. Nothing like a good Megidolaon to get people to listen to you.

Taking a moment to think, Narukami then proceeds to launches into a summary of his adventures so far. He mentioned that something called the Midnight Channel, a TV 'program' that appears exactly on midnight while it's raining, shows the Shadow of the person dragged into the TV world. Apparently, the bizarre murders that happened in the town was caused by the person being killed by their own Shadow. So Narukami, after accidentally finding out he can enter the TV world, decided to fight against the Shadows and investigate who's been throwing people into TVs. In addition, it seems like he's a Wild Card like Minato.

So Persona users are able to enter TVs? Maybe the rule only applies to Persona users in Inaba, though. There's also the fact that they don't need Evokers to bring out their Persona. Instead, in order to receive their Persona they had to overcome their own Shadow and accept it into their hearts. I guess these kids could be considered true natural Persona users. If that's the case… Could there be a Shadow of me in this world? No. Narukami had his Persona before which allowed him to enter into the TV world in the first place, and he said he hadn't faced his Shadow.

Ah man. All this stuff is way too complicated for me. If only Minato or Mitsuru were here.

Sighing, I massage my forehead to try to nurse away the oncoming headache.

"Alright, in any case, it's about time to explain myself, right?"

At that, all the kids gather around me and stare at me with rapt attention. That makes sense considering they must've thought they were the only people who could use Persona before meeting me.

Clearing my throat, I begin, "I came here to investigate the town of Inaba after our sensors detected a massive, sudden spike of Shadow activity not too long ago. It was extremely brief, but it warranted some investigation. After digging into it a little, my CO discovered the string of bizarre deaths and disappearances that took place in this town. Deciding that it'd be safer to investigate, she sent me over. Although, the last thing I expected to see was a group of high school kids using Personae to fight Shadows in a foggy TV world."

"Huh? That's it?" Tatsumi, the biker, asks.

"That's it," I reply.

"Huh? But that doesn't explain anything!" Hanamura says. "Like why you can use a Persona and how you know about Shadows and stuff!"

I guess it wouldn't hurt to give them a little information to get them to trust me more.

"Well… All you need to know is that a Shadow incident took place a few years ago and we went through a similar ordeal where we awakened our powers in order to fight against the Shadows. In fact, if it hadn't been for my brother, the world would've been completely destroyed by now."

"Destroyed?"

"I'll just leave the rest up to your imaginations." Turning around, I throw a wave over my shoulder at the group of kids as I begin walking to the stack of TVs sitting nearby. "In any case, I have to report back my findings here and gear up. After I'm back, let's go take on that Kubo guy.

Without waiting for a reply, I slip into one of the boxes and the feeling of weightlessness overtakes me once again.

-xXx-

"Don't rescue anymore…" I mumble as I stare down at the message composed of cut out letters.

"What do you think, Arisato-san?"

My eyes flit towards Yu then down to the letter in my hands.

"Looks like a message from the killer to me. It also looks like they know who we are."

"Right?" Rise says. "There's no way such a specific letter sent to Senpai's place could be a prank!"

"Tch. This bastard's got some balls tryin' to threaten us like that!" Kanji shouts as he pounds his fist into the table, drawing more than a few curious stares from the people around us.

"Hey, you idiot!" Yosuke cries, jumping to his feet. "Don't lose your cool like that! You're going to scare away all the customers!"

"Er, sorry…"

Sighing, I throw the letter back onto the table in front of me. "Back on track, I don't suppose we can wipe this thing for fingerprints, right?"

Naoto shakes her head. "Unfortunately that would not be wise. Although I do have access to the police station, I'm sure they would not take too kindly to an outsider using their forensics equipment. Not to mention they would start asking questions about the letter which would lead them to Yu-senpai."

"Good point. The last thing we need are the police coming down on us because they found out we're investigating the murders. I already got enough heat from them when I first got into town."

That's right. A couple of months have passed since I first met up with and joined the Investigation Team and since then not much has happened. After capturing Mitsuo Kubo, we found out that he was just a copycat killer due to Naoto Shirogane's, a young prodigious detective that awakened to her powers not long after Kubo's arrest, deductions.

"Anyways," I say while grabbing the letter before standing up. "I'll send this thing back to HQ to see if they can't find anything about it. The results may take a while to get back, but it's better than nothing. Right?"

Yu nods. "Alright. Thanks again for you help, Arisato-san."

Smiling, I gently tapped the grey-haired kid on the head. "Don't worry about it. Its admirable how you're all working so hard, but don't forget to relax once in a while. You're all free today, right? Why not go out and do something fun together with your friends?"

"Then would you like to come with us, Arisato-san?" I hear Yu say as I'm beginning to walk away.

"Huh?

I turn around and see the boy looking at me with a slight smile on his face.

"I asked if you'd like to come with us," he repeats.

"No, no, no. I heard you the first time, but why would you want me to come with you?"

Yu's smile morphs into a smirk as he sits back in his chair. "You said so yourself, didn't you? That I should go out and do something fun together with my friends."

I was taken aback by his statement. It wasn't the words that surprised me, but the way he said it that took me by surprise. He said it so matter-of-factly that even I believed it for a second.

"You… See me as a friend?"

The boy nods. "Of course."

"You do know that I'm just going to disappear once this whole incident has been taken care of, right? Besides, you barely know a thing about me. How could you say that I'm your friend?"

"That's not true, Saya-san!" Rise suddenly exclaims. "You've helped us all so much over the past couple of months!"

Yukiko nods. "Even though you're our guest, you've been helping out at the inn whenever it gets busy."

"Same here," Yosuke adds with his signature grin. "My dad says you're a big help to have around the store."

"Yeah! So don't go sayin' shit like that! My ma would've been sad if she heard ya say that!" Kanji shouts.

These kids…

"Indeed," Naoto says. "Your insight and previous knowledge of Shadows have been invaluable to us."

"Aaaaah! Alright, alright! That's enough! I get it!" I shout before anybody else can voice their opinions.

Dammit. I can feel my face burning up.

Yu smirks at me and pats me on the back.

"Well, friend, what do you have in mind?"

-xXx-

I stare down blankly at the lifeless body of the little girl in front of me. She looks so much more frail tucked into the white sheets of the hospital bed, hooked up to life support machines, as if a singular touch would turn her to dust. The only sound in the room is the long, drawn out tone of the EKG monitor.

"Nanako-chan…" I hear somebody whisper behind me.

In front of me I can see Yu's shoulders shaking as he struggles to hold back his tears.

Even though I've only known the little girl for a short time, it was long enough for me to start treating her like a little sister. My hand hovers over my heart. It hurts. It hurts just as much as when Shinji died.

"Nanako!"

The door to the hospital room bursts open and Dojima stumbles in with a nurse trailing behind him trying to rein him back. He takes a glance around the room, seeing the expressions on our faces before his eyes finally land on Nanako.

"Nanako..." He repeats as he staggers up to his dead daughter's beside before collapsing onto his knees. "Please, open your eyes… It's dad… Nanako… Please…"

Tears stream down his face as he desperately clutches the little girl's hands. All of the Investigation Team members sob alongside the broken man until he comes to a sudden, shuddering stop. A look of rage washes over Dojima as he stands, trembling.

"NAMATAMEEEEE!" The man roars, his voice filled with grief as he storms out of the room. The nurses quickly take off after him doing their best to stop the rampaging man.

"He's going to kill Namatame," I say as the room falls quiet once again. Without waiting for an answer, I turn around and leave the room.

I can't say I don't understand Dojima's feelings, but he's a cop. He shouldn't go around killing people in anger. Something like that would be best left up to me.

Making my way to Namatame's room, I see Dojima struggling weakly against the police officers stationed there.

"Dojima-san," I say calmly as I walk up to him. "Killing him won't bring Nanako back. Not to mention Nanako wouldn't have wanted for her father to end up ruining the rest of his life. "

The man stops struggling long enough for the officers to properly detain him as he vehemently turns toward me.

"What would you know?! I've lost my wife and my child! What else is there to live for?!"

"Then live. Live for the sake of living. Live the life you have to honor the memories of the family so unjustly taken from you. Live for them when they didn't get a chance to."

My words seem to have some effect on Dojima as he stops moving and goes limp. Tears spill from his eyes and land gently on the hospital floor.

"Nanako…" He whimpers as the two police officers give me a grateful nod and begin to escort him back to his room.

Once the coast is clear, I open the door to Namatame's room and step inside. The middle-aged man is still unconscious in the hospital bed. I walk to his bedside and wrap my hands around his throat when the door opens again.

Several gasps come from behind me, and I can only assume that the Investigation Team had arrived.

"Saya-chan! What are you doing?!"

I don't look back at Rise's protest and instead begin to squeeze. It's easy. So easy. Taking a life has never been this easy. Just like back then. Just like with that bastard. The best part is; I don't feel a thing.

"Saya-san! Stop!"

Naoto is the one to speak up this time.

"I said stop! Or I'll be forced to shoot!"

I turn my head around just enough to see the young detective in my peripheral pointing her revolver at me.

"Really now? Do you have the guts to kill your own friend?"

Naoto's eyes widen as she lowers her gun. During my stay in Inaba, I had grown the closest to Naoto. Perhaps it was because our appearances are similar or maybe it's because I enjoyed being able to help her solve her cases. Whatever the case, the detective had become more than a little fond of me.

"Go ahead then. You kill me, or I kill Namatame."

My grip tightens and a single gunshot rings out in the silence of the hospital ward. Crimson begins to pour forth from my right shoulder and stain my clothes as I'm forced to release Namatame due to the searing pain. Clutching at the wound, I stagger backwards and brace myself against the wall.

I reorient myself until I'm facing the Investigation Team. All of their mouths hang agape except for the blue-haired detective who has steel in her gaze while pointing the smoking barrel of her revolver at me.

"Well done, Naoto," I mutter as I push myself off the wall and stumble towards the TV. "Thank you."

The screen engulfs me and the last thing I see are the panicked expressions of the Investigation Team trying to reach for me.

-xXx-

Living in the TV world was rough. There is no sense of time, no source of water, and no food either. If it was anyone else but me, I'm sure that they'd be dead within three days providing that the Shadows don't get to them first. The Shadows and the lack of resources weren't a problem for me, but the presence of the Investigation Team was. I didn't doubt that they would come into the TV world to try to search for me so I ended up travelling as deep as I could in order to avoid them. Of course, I also spent a lot of my time training and in the end I managed to get the hang of summoning my Persona without using my Evoker.

Eventually I stumbled across another dungeon area, except the feeling I got from it was significantly different from the others. A wide red path stretched before me decorated with gates while floating over a misty chasm. In the distance were extremely powerful Shadows that are comparable to the ones in the upper levels of Tartarus.

Stepping forward through the gates, I brandish my naginata and begin making my way through the new dungeon. If I had to guess, I'd say this is the area before the final boss. In that case, if I go ahead and take care of it now it'd save the Investigation Team the trouble of having to fight it.

In almost no time at all, I manage to climb the dungeon while easily disposing of the Shadows standing in my way only to find a battle already taking place at the end. The entirety of the Investigation Team appears to be fighting a giant blood red skeleton with a vaguely female figure composed of the same bones sitting at the top. However, it looks like they're fighting a losing battle.

"It is a shame that things have to end this way," the skeleton woman says, her voice seemingly coming from all directions at once.

All of a sudden, a swarming mass of hands sprout up from the ground and latch onto each member of the Investigation Team and begins pulling them down into the ground. Their screams get cut off one by one as they disappear underneath the surface.

This… reminds me a lot of the time when we fought Nyx. If that's the case, then it's Yu's responsibility to get back up and defeat this thing as the Wild Card.

That doesn't mean I'm just going to stand around and watch, though.

"So you're the god being behind this whole situation, huh?" I announce as I begin making my way towards the structure of bones.

"You are different. I sense a great power within you. What are you?"

"I'm…" I hesitate for a second as the words form on my lips. "I'm their friend."

"I see. So you are an ally. Very well, you shall suffer the same fate as them."

The same dark hands burst forth from the ground to try to grab me but are repelled almost instantly as Stheno materializes beside me.

"What?! What is this power?!"

I stand with my arms crossed while Stheno fends off any and all attack directed at me by the woman.

"I could probably destroy you quite easily at this point, but I feel like I've interfered with this journey too much already," I say with a smirk as a human hand covered with the sleeve of a gakuran bursts out of the murky red substance in front of me. "The one who'll defeat you, is him."

The figure then continues to pull himself out of the mud before using his katana to steady himself and then stands at his full height. He shoots a glance over his shoulder at me and nods before squaring off against the final boss.

"Go get'er, tiger."

Turning around, I feel a massive, world-shattering power explode from the teenage boy and engulf the arena behind me.

"Come! Izanagi-no-Okami!"

I suppose that ends that.

-xXx-

"Saya-san, I have arrived to pick you up. Kirijo-san congratulates you on a mission success."

"Thanks," I mutter with a yawn as I step past my escort and into the limousine. Couldn't Mitsuru have picked a less conspicuous vehicle? I'm getting curious stares from the Amagi Inn staff.

It's over, huh. I feel like my involvement here was entirely unnecessary. Sighing, I lean back into the leather covered seat as the car begins to move.

In the end, I never did get to clear up my relations with the Investigation Team. Even during checkout I did my best to avoid Yukiko. It kind of does make me feel bad for just skipping out of town like this, but I have no doubt that Yu will tell the rest that I'm fine.

But to think Adachi was the mastermind behind all this. Goes to show that you can't judge a book by its cover.

I'm jolted out of my thoughts as the limo comes to a sudden stop.

"Saya-san, some teenagers are saying they wish to speak with you. What should I say?" I hear my escort's voice call out from the front.

Teenagers? Don't tell me…

Opening the door, I step out and am greeted by the sight of the Investigation Team crowding around the front of the limo.

What the hell are they doing?

"Saya-chan!"

Rise is the first one to call out to me as she breaks into a sprint and tackles me to the ground before I have a chance to react.

"We were so worried when you suddenly fell into the TV and disappeared like that!" The idol cries as squeezes the life out of me.

"Heh. Did'ya really think you could just skip town like that without telling us?" Yosuke says with a smirk.

"Yeah! What's up with that? Aren't we friends?" Chie adds.

"Besides," Kanji says as he pushes Naoto, who was hiding behind him, out in front of me. "She has somethin' she wants to say to you."

"Ah…" The Detective Prince, averts her eyes and pulls her cap down to cover her regret filled face. "I... I apologize for shooting you, Arisato-san. At that time, I didn't know what to do and I just… Panicked… and…"

Although she was putting on a tough front, her voice quivered and threatened to break with each word.

Sighing, I did my best to stretch my arm out to caress her face with Rise still clinging tightly to me.

"It's alright, Naoto. I lost myself for a moment there. You did the right thing."

"Arisato-san…"

Retracting my hand slightly, I deliver a light poke to the girl's nose.

"I already told you to call me, Saya, right?"

Naoto's face turns red at that as she proceeds to try to bury her face under her gakuran's collar.

"Okay, Saya…"

After finishing saying the last of my goodbyes to the Investigation Team and stopping by Dojima's house to bid farewall to the grizzled detective and Nanako whom I learned had a miraculous recovery, I was on my way back to the Kirijo Group Headquarters to deliver a proper mission report to Mitsuru.

Certainly, my presence here in Inaba may not have made a big difference, but the bonds I've forged with Yu and the others can only be described as real.

Perhaps if fate allows it, our paths will cross again someday.

* * *

 **-Status-**

 **Name:** Saya Arisato

 **Age:** 18

 **Academics:** Genius

 **Charm:** Charismatic

 **Courage:** Badass

 **Persona:** Stheno

 **Arcana:** Universe

 **Strength:** N/A

 **Weak:** N/A

 **Skills:**

Sexy Dance

Recarmda

Makarakarn

Tentarafoo

Spirit Drain

Poison Arrow

Dekaja

Megidolaon


End file.
